Modern thin wing aircraft designs are aimed at optimizing fuel economy. Due to the thin wing design, the area along the spars of the wings may be congested such that routing of mechanical drive shafts, such as torque tubes, between the central power drive unit and actuators and between actuators may be difficult.
Prior actuation systems may eliminate torque tube routes by providing individual servo-controlled electric actuators at each actuation station such that each station may use one or more motor controllers with associated motor commutation signals and loop closures. Using a multiple controller system may have complex wiring for the controllers and require more components than in other actuation systems. Thus, the prior actuation system may have disadvantages with regards to system reliability, the overall weight of the system aboard the aircraft, the envelope of the aircraft, and the ability to perform maintenance on the system.